Placeholder So you want to know what I do?

[Ialari Pythone]

15th Day of Spring 518

Spring in Syka was finally in motion. The events revolving around the World Gate had come to an end and the aftermath was still underway. The Verusk were now in Syka and Ialari had taken on the task of introducing one of them to the settlement and showing them what life was like in present day Mizahar. Ialari's particular guest was the Verusk known as, Kajun. At least that is what she called him as his full name was a little bit too cumbersome in casual conversation.

They'd spent several days thus far together yet still they knew little of each other. Ialari, being Ialari, was not all that forthcoming with personal information and Kajun, not unlike his host, was something of loner as well. Realizing that something had to give, Ialari decided that if any progress were to be made with her guest, she would have to be the one to initiate it.

As the day began, Syna's rays reaching out for Leth as he faded past the horizon, Ialari awoke. As was usual for her, sleep had not come easy. When she woke, she was drenched in sweat, her hands trembling and her eyes had difficulty focusing. The nightmares. They were always there whenever she closed her eyes, hoping for peaceful sleep. Visions of horrific torture and death at the hands of one, Amir Berliotz, Master Morpher and one of the Seven Robes of Alahea. She was not the one being tortured however; it was her or rather him engaged in the torture. He was looking for the secrets of Dominion; the magic gifted to her by the gods. He went to such lengths to discover it that he destroyed countless lives in the process. These were the nightmares that haunted her. The images of people, innocent people, being literally turned inside out, mind, body and soul in Berliotz search for Dominion.

Having willingly took his shattered soul into her own body, she reforged him. Once split into several ghosts, Ialari brought them all together and gave him substance once more. In the end she was forced to deliver him to Dira, Goddess of Death. Well, not forced exactly; Ialari made a deal with Death to gain the Goddess' support for acquiring Dominion from Izurdin. She was to deliver Berliotz' soul to Dira in exchange for the Mark of Death, she succeeded.

Not a night went by that Ialari questioned the entire experience. Before embracing the terrible, tortured yet thankfully short sleep, she questioned her decision to accept the Dominion Scrolls from Izurdin and questioned her deal with Dira. Although the rewards were beyond measure, the cost was almost too much.

As she struggled to regain her own senses upon waking, her eyes focused on a figure sitting in the chair not far from her bed. It was Kajun. Rubbing the sleep and terror from her eyes, she focused on the Verusk. He was watching her, as he had many times over the days since his arrival in Syka.

"Why do I wake to see you staring at me like some sort of perverted creeper?" She asked while stretching her aching muscles.

Momentarily turning his gaze from her sudden nudity as the sheets fell away, Kajun hesitated for a moment before answering. "My apologies. It's just that...when you sleep, it is never soundly. You twist, turn and cry out over and over again throughout the night. It's...it concerns me. It is not normal."

Ialari gave a dry chuckle and reached for the pitcher of water on the stand next to the bed and drank deeply before saying, "Kajun, I know you haven't been here long or know me all that well but I am anything but normal. As for my sleep...I've seen things...I...by Izurdin, maybe someday I can explain it but not yet."

Kajun simply nodded. Although he had known Ialari but a relative handful of days, he'd already realized that she was something of a puzzle that, when it was ready, would allow the pieces to come together to form a bigger picture. He knew it would be a slow process, agonizingly slow, but he had nothing but time on his hands and a mind that preferred such a puzzle.

[Ialari Pythone]

Moving past the potential awkward moment, he asked, "So, what is the plan for this day? We've explored the beach at length thus far. Beautiful as it is and refreshing to put it mildly, it is not the only thing that surrounds us. This jungle...I was hoping you could show me some of it."

With a heavy, somewhat annoyed sigh, Ialari crawled out of bed. Her full nudity was something Kajun still hadn't gotten used to. Averting his eyes again, he waited for the expected frustration, annoyance and anger that he come to know from Ialari. For Ialari's part, she did not display such an attitude as she walked over to the wardrobe, retrieved a few articles of clothing and began to dress. Over her shoulder she said, "That's a good idea. I've ignored my duties around here for too long."

"What is it you do again?" Kajun asked, somewhat hoping he could get a rise out of his host. It was something he'd learned within the first couple of days with her; that there were some things he could push in her that would elicit emotion. Emotion wasn't something she'd expressed much of but it was something he was interested in reading. Ialari was strange to him, even more so that many of the other settlers in Syka. She was Isur but her oddity went even farther than that in his eyes. She was obviously damaged, complicated and not, in any way, like those of her kind he'd read about back on his homeworld.

Ialari frowned as she pulled up the black silk loincloth and stretched the black silk wrap around her chest. "Very funny coming from a wannabe gecko. We are going to go out today and collect some samples for the Panacea. I noticed a few odd looking plants a few days back that I think would make for a good remedy for insect bites and other skin irritations. At least they looked similar to other plants I'm familiar with from other parts of Mizahar. You're welcome to join me if you can keep the annoying comments to yourself."

Kajun smiled, it was the reaction he hoped to elicit. A student of behavior, he found that a lot can be learned of an individual based on their reactions to certain social stimuli. Of course, he could always touch Ialari and read her memories but he fully realized that by doing so, without her permission, he would likely end up suffocating on his own vomit after ingesting some unnamed poison slipped into his water or infused into a bit of fruit.

"Sounds like a plan. How shall we begin?" He asked, absently rubbing his throat at the thought of pushing Ialari too far.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari retrieved her backpack and sat it on the bed. Opening it, she started to empty it piece by piece in order to take stock of what there was. She hadn't gone through it in many days as she hadn't the need for it with simple beach and coastal excursions. When the pack was empty and its contents laid out, she motioned for Kajun to get closer.

Getting out to the chair, Kajun walked over to stand next to Ialari. He looked at the items laid out on the bed with interest. Of course he recognized many of the items although he wasn't familiar with all of their uses. Where he grew up and lived before Syka was an endless desert, as far from being a tropical jungle as one could get.

As Ialari fiddled with the items, she took stock of exactly what was there, how much of it and whether or not some items needed replaced. While their trip into the jungle wasn't supposed to be a long one, she always made sure to prepare for the worst.

"Alright, travel into the jungle, even into the fringes as we will be doing, requires some planning. Admittedly, I only know a little bit about the actual jungle; my experiences away from civilization are primarily anchored in a somewhat cooler, less humid climate with vastly different flora and fauna to consider. Still, the basic principles remain." Ialari separated each item and groups of items from one another. She then considered how to best describe the items. She didn't feel like much of an instructor yet, if she was going to help Kajun adapt to his new life in Syka and learn how to survive, she would have to learn how to teach. Along the way, she figured she might learn a bit as well...or at least discover a new way of looking at things.

"Even though I am not all that experienced with the jungle, I do know a bit about coastal forests. So I use the same techniques and carry much the same gear regardless of the environment I'm in. Here in Syka though, survival is primary. We don't have the numbers, supplies or facilities enough to handle any and every possible situation that may arise." Ialari paused. She was getting ahead of herself, or was she? She took a breath and backtracked her thinking a bit.

Kajun listened intently. If anything, he was an accomplished observer. He watched and listened, memorizing everything Ialari said as she spoke it.

Ialari picked up her now empty pack. "It may seem obvious but a good pack is the first thing you should consider when heading out into the jungle. It needs to be spacious enough to carry everything you need but allow for easy access to those items as well. I like this one because I can strap a lot of things to the outside so they are always easier to reach."
She held up the pack and pointed out the various straps.

Laying the pack back on the bed, she moved on to the various items that she'd taken out of it. "I always take a filled waterskin. While the jungle has no shortage of water, there are a lot of toxins and poisons that can seep into it depending on the surrounding plants and what animals may be frequent any particular source." She pointed to the waterskin before moving on. Each item she described, she either picked it up to demonstrate its use or pointed to it with a general description.

"A bit of flint and steel is a must unless you have some other method of starting a fire. I've found though that in the jungle, it's hard to find dry material to get the fire going. So I usually try to take with me a small tinder bundle; a handful of dry material that takes a spark quickly." Ialari put the flint and steel in one of the pockets of the pack while strapping the waterskin to the outside. She then moved on to the next item.

Kajun nodded at Ialari's mention of fire being difficult to start in the jungle. His short time spent in the jungle with the rest of his people after they arrived through the World Gate revealed just how different the humid environment was compared to his home.

Ialari held up a small wooden case. "This is a portable shelter. When opened, the entire things unfolds to create a small shelter just big enough for a person to squeeze into and escape the elements. I don't use it often but I like to have it just in case." She strapped the case to the side of the pack and continued.

Next was the her small first aid kit. "As you've probably noticed already, the jungle is filled with all manner of obstacles and dangers. Which is why I carry this little kit filled with bandages, a couple doses of common poison remedies, a bit of salve and a few other minor items. It's not much but if you get in a situation, it can mean everything."

Ialari put the first aid kit in the backpack and picked up her portable poisoncrafting kit. "My primary reason for going into the jungle is to seek out poisons and other toxic substances and come up with ways to combat them. That's why I have this. This kit has everything I need to collect various ingredients and samples to use in the crafting of antidotes and antitoxins." She put that kit in her pack as well.

Kajun spoke up and asked, "Is all of this really necessary if you are only going to spent part of a day in the outskirts of the jungle?"

Ialari took a slow breath before responding, "You would think so wouldn't you? For others, maybe it would be a bit too much. For me though, I don't always end up spending just part of a day even if that is all I initially planned. It's been my experience, time and time again, that there are so many possible outcomes to any particular plan or action that if something can happen to make things difficult, it will. So I plan for as much of it as is feasible."

"Fair enough." Kajun said as he waited for Ialari to continue.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari picked through the last few items. She held up a small folded cloth and opened it up to reveal several pieces of dried meat. "Of course, on the beach, its easy to find food of some sort. From what I have learned though from the time I've spent not just here but in other wild areas I've lived in, is that sometimes finding something safe to eat is not all that easy. So, I always carry with me a little something extra just in case. This, this is dried sea-bird meat; something I've come to enjoy." Ialari wrapped the meat back up and put it in her pack.

"Wait a moment. If I may, how do you go about killing one of those birds to get its meat? Don't they just fly away if you get too close? Wouldn't there be an easier source?" Kajun asked with a bit of confusion on his face.

Ialari chuckled slightly. "I'll share something I've learned about the birds that frequent the beach. While they are quite capable of catching fish or crabs, they are also aggressively persistent, opportunistic scavengers. Take a handful of fish guts, toss a bit of it out where they can see it and they get worked into a frenzy. Once they know you have it, they'll try and snatch it from you. That's where a sturdy tree branch and a few well timed swings comes in. It can take some time and a lot of patience but eventually you'll hit one. Pluck it, gut it and roast it and not only to you get a tasty little meal but you also end up with more guts to bait some more. Little by little, you'll end up with quite a few."

Ialari moved on to the next few items but not before Kajun commented on the birds. "Sounds like an exhausting waste of energy for so little return."

In the short time she'd played host to the Verusk, he'd proven that he had little problem stating his opinion on things. Most of the time they were simple matter-of-fact statements yet that did not make them any less frustrating at times. While he often annoyed her in this manner and his occasional verbal jabs to get a rise out of her were sometimes angering, she found him to be something of a refreshing change from the other settlers in Syka; those from this world. It helped that Kajun was also getting over his shyness around her and the awkward way he acted around her was softening. She still enjoyed toying with him though, always walking around in some state of nudity or making suggestive comments just to keep him off-balance.

Frowning slightly, she responded to his comment, "Sometimes its not about what you get in return for your actions that is important. The action itself can be just as fulfilling. For a few years I was isolated, separated from civilization with only a zith for company." She paused a moment realizing that Kajun likely didn't know what a zith was. From what little she knew of their history, which was almost nothing, they didn't exist before the Valterrian.

"A zith is humanoid creature with wings, claws and a taste for meat, humanoid or other. While it's a story for a different time, let me just say that, after no small amount of effort, we came to an understanding. Anyway, back to my point. Living mostly alone as I did, I had to find things to keep my mind and body active. While I had something that did that for the most part, I sometimes needed a break from it. Swatting sea-birds out of the air was that break." Ialari picked through a small pile of clothing and put it in her pack as well, along with the special poncho that Kultra had given her.

Kajun considered what Ialari had said about her isolation. He could tell there was so much more to the story than what little she'd revealed. He thought that maybe later he would press her more about it. For now though he watched as she packed the clothes away. It was obvious why she took a change of clothes with her and from what he knew of the poncho, the ability to hide oneself in the jungle was invaluable.

With nearly everything sorted through and packed, Ialari came to the last three items laid out on the bed and picked them up one by one. "Of course I never go anywhere without at least one of these." She held two daggers, one having maybe once been a ceremonial, ornamental weapon, had since been sharpened and the handle wrapped with a more comfortable leather for more regular use. The other, was an unusual sight. It had a bleached-white tooth blade baring a dangerously sharp edge extending from a brilliantly red conch shell veined with silver. The surface of the shell also held the etched texture of a fishing net. The shell wrapped around Ialari's hand to a perfect fit creating a full guard as strong as steel. Extending down from the other end of the shell was the dagger's hilt. It was as soft as silk and black as the darkest night. The silver pommel was shaped like a miniature scythe. In all the dagger was about a foot and a half long from pommel to blade tip and aside from a few minor blemishes that were likely apparent only to the eyes of its creator, the dagger appeared flawless.

Kajun's eyes widened as he looked at the tooth dagger. Coming from a desert world, such a sight was quite an impressive one. Clearing his throat, he asked, "How did you come about that? It's...like nothing I've ever seen."

Ialari slid the first dagger into a loop on the belt that was attached to her loincloth. She then held the tooth dagger up and looked lovingly at it. "I made this a few years ago from items I'd gathered along the beach where I lived. It bares a bit of myself in it; a process known as Izentor. It is what brought all the pieces together and gave the dagger its strength and smoother appearance."

Kajun was learning more about Ialari in a few moments than he had in the past several days since coming to live with her. Yet, despite her opening up more and sharing a bit about herself, Kajun felt that there were volumes left to discover and learn in regards to who Ialari was.

Ialari picked up the last item from the bed, the one she had come to call, Stormslinger. It was the strange weapon she'd found at the base of the Stair Step Falls, the weapon much like those that the Verusk themselves possessed. Resembling a crossbow without the bow and covered in glyphs, when loaded with a stormgem, it could unleash blasts of crackling energy in whatever direction the weapon was pointed. "Finally there's this. I haven't had a chance to really learn to use it well but knowing at least a little of what it can do...it's a handy thing to have in an emergency." She secured the weapon to the side of her pack. Putting the pack on her back, she turned to Kajun.

"Grab your stuff. We'll stop by the Mercantile before we leave and pick you up a few things." Ialari waited for Kajun as he picked up his own meager pack and retrieved his staff from against the wall. The two then left the ranchero and walked further into the settlement to the Mercantile.

[Ialari Pythone]

Ialari and Kajun walked the short distance to the Mercantile. There Ialari bought Kajun a better pair of boots more fitted for the jungle. She also picked out a simple yet serviceable dagger and a prepacked survival kit for him. For herself, she bought a small iron pot and wooden spoon. After paying and tending to their newly purchased gear, Ialari and Kajun left the Mercantile and made their way toward the outskirts of the settlement.

Kajun thanked Ialari for the things she'd bought for him and decided to try and get to know more about her. It felt rather archaic to do so through conversation but the more he got Ialari to open up about herself and her experiences, the more he learned of her and the new world he found himself in. Hearing about it all as spoken from her mouth as opposed to experiencing her memories as his own had a rather novel feel about it.

"You've mentioned your time away from civilization and of living on another beach in a place far from here. Where is it that you lived for so long?" He asked with hopes of getting something, anything out of her.

Walking down the cleared path through the settlement on their approach toward the jungle outskirts, Ialari heard Kajun's question but wasn't sure at first how to respond. There was a part of her that wanted to share her story with someone, anyone, yet there was another part of her that was afraid to open up at all. She'd been alone for so long. Sure there had been a few people in her life since leaving Sultros; Shalla, the ghost and the zith, Va'al as well as Kavala and a handful of others to lesser degrees but even then she maintained her distance. To open up was to become vulnerable; to expose herself in ways that she thought were dangerous. Complicating it all was the nature of who and what she was; something she wasn't even at all clear on herself.

She sighed deeply and said, "It's a terribly long story and I don't even know where is right to begin. So, I guess I'll just start with the more recent and maybe work back from there." She could have started at the beginning but that would mean revealing things she wasn't all that ready to reveal to anyone yet.

"Before Syka, I lived for a couple of seasons in a placed called, Riverfall. It's across the sea from here by a few days, depending on the winds. I'd been to Riverfall a couple of times in the past but not for any real length of time. I spent some time working in a place known as the Sanctuary, owned by a Konti woman named, Kavala. She is a generous person, quite different from most humans I've met. That is of course before arriving in Syka. I learned some valuable things from Kavala and look forward to seeing her again." Ialari smiled at the thought of her friend before continuing.

"I made the decision to travel to Riverfall after realizing that I'd spent too much time away from civilization. Riverfall was one of the few places I'd remembered being at least somewhat tolerable. Before Riverfall, I lived...on the east coast of Syliras...roughly 3,000 miles from here." Ialari hesitated with revealing the distance she'd traveled since the fact was she didn't actually traverse those miles on her way to Riverfall.

Kajun, somewhat familiar with pre-Valterrian Mizahar geography, raised an eyebrow at the mention of just how far Ialari had traveled. "Such a distance...that would take, under ideal conditions, a good portion of a year if not more. Why is it that you claim your knowledge of survival in the wilds is limited? Such a journey would most surely mean death to anyone less than a master survivalist."

Ialari silently cursed Kajun's intellect and attention to detail. While it was something she admired most about him, it also made him something of a pain in her ass. "Yeah, about that...There are methods of travel that shave off quite a bit of time as well as allowing for better safety." While she wasn't necessarily lying, she did change the order of operations around a bit. She had traveled from Sultros to Sahova through traditional methods, which did take almost two years. She swapped that in exchange for her journey to Riverfall. "There is a road through the region of Syliras, still existing from the time before the Valterrian and maintained by a bunch of human knights. It makes travel through the region quicker and safer than it would otherwise be."

Kajun considered her answer. It made sense. An established road would allow for speed and if it was patrolled regularly, safety would not be as big of an issue either.

When Kajun didn't counter, Ialari felt relieved as she continued, delicately, with her story. "I lived for a few years on the coast of Syliras. I'd found a small collection of pre-Valterrian ruins that I'd converted into a safe place I call, The Retreat. It was there that I met the zith, Va'al. He and a couple others of his kind stumbled upon me and proceeded to hunt me as their prey. That turned out badly for them. After a rather brutal fight, I killed two of the zith and maimed the third. Just as I was about to finish him, I saw that he bore a strange mark. It was the mark of a goddess. I hold the divine in very high regard so in that moment, I spared his life. I tended to his wounds and nursed him back to health. Over time, we didn't exactly become friends so much as companions. We realized that we were both outsiders, unable to fully return to our respective societies. With him, I had effectively neutered him which made his usefulness among his kind null and void. With me, well, as much as I love my people, I never really felt like I was a part of them. So, for the next couple of years, we relied on each other's company for sanity. When I left for Riverfall, I left him at The Retreat to help protect it from anyone who may stumble upon it. I promised him I would return."

Kajun listened intently as Ialari spoke. He observed her body language and facial movements as well, noting how she seemed to become somewhat lost in the memories she was reciting.

"While living at The Retreat, I learned a bit about survival. I learned how to catch the sea-birds like I mentioned. I learned about the local plants and wildlife as well as the various poisons, toxins found there and how to combat them. Va'al taught me a few things about survival and hunting and in my attempts at helping heal the damage I caused him, I learned a bit about medicine and how to find ingredients in the forest to make such things. It was not all that bad of a life but I had too many questions about life itself that couldn't be answered there." Ialari silently thanked the fact that it was a short walk to the jungle as they approached the point where light shrubs and sparse foliage gave way to thicker greenery. "Ah, here we are. Ok, so we are looking for a mid-sized tree with small white flowers. It will kind of stand out from the rest. I remember catching a glimpse of it somewhere in this area but I really don't remember the exact location. Just look for the white flowers. Oh, and watch where you step, there are exposed roots that are often covered in underbrush. It hurts when you fall."

They both slowly entered the fringe jungle, keeping an eye out for a tree with white flowers.

Word Count Thus Far: 4,790